a wall to remember

I decided to have Jeff paint a section of our kitchen wall with chalkboard paint. Three things prompted it - lack of a picture on the wall, something I'd seen on HGTV and in local restaurants, and I wasn't too concerned about losing any more value in our home by merely painting a chalkboard.

Jeff and I were working out to our "30 day shred" video one day and Jeff happened to knock a gigantic picture off the wall while doing some leg lifts (or some other fancy core work that Jillian has a special name for - I just can't remember, so I'll call them leg lifts.) It was loud, the picture was heavy and the glass shattered - all over. Luckily, no one was hurt, but the noise was great enough to get the attention of 2-3 perfectly content children. We were only 20 minutes into our workout at the time. Bummer. Picture went in the garbage. :(

A side note about the perfectly content children... if you're a parent, you'll know what I mean. Anytime the kids are playing and getting along and entertaining themselves, it's a beautiful moment. And, with any hope, that moment lingers for a long time. So, during that moment, you're careful to make sure you don't do anything. Anything at all to disturb or change that picture-perfect, happy suburban family, Pollyanna, smiling and cheerful 'Leave it to Beaver' TV ad (or however you'd like to think of it,) because those moments are precious and few and oh, so nice. So, when the picture fell off the wall, it ended the 30 minute workout and it disturbed the serene moment of brotherly/sisterly togetherness we see so seldom.

I wanted a place to write out our daily dinner menu, since I'm often pushed by the wayside as my children bust through the door and run to the oven or stove to see what we're having for dinner. I usually get my hugs and hello after they get that taken care of. I also wanted a place for the younger kids to be able to draw while I'm busy in the kitchen and necessarily don't want one of them attached to my hip while I'm near gas flames or hot water or whatever...

So, here's the small section that Jeff painted.

The first night, I titled the area with "MENU." And, I added our menu of Cajun chicken fettuccine, caesar salad and crusty bread, but the inner coach in Jeff suddenly erased my menu and replaced it with a basketball setup/play.

I haven't had the heart to erase it. And, as I stare at it longer, it looks more like a piece of art. So, our kitchen chalkboard may now be a permanent art form. And, there will always be a story behind it.